Amidst ongoing unrest in Burma, Sister Ann Roza heroically knelt down in front of the junta’s police and pled with them to “spare the children,” saying “just shoot me if you want to.”
Recognizing her bravery, in Pope Francis’ Wednesday General Audience address he said: “I too kneel on the streets of Myanmar and say: stop the violence! I too extend my arms and say: let dialogue prevail!”
“Once again and with great sadness I feel the urgency to evoke the dramatic situation in Myanmar, where so many people, especially the young, are losing their lives to offer hope to their country. Blood does not solve anything. Dialogue must prevail. I ask the Lord Jesus, Prince of Peace, that a way of sincere dialogue can be found to find adequate solutions to the current difficulties, and thus build together the long-awaited peace. Remember that violence is always self-destructive. With it, nothing is gained, but much is lost – sometimes everything.”
Not the first time Pope Francis has spoken out against the violence in Burma, on March 3rd he appealed to the international community to “ensure that the aspirations of the people of Myanmar are not stifled by violence.” In early February speaking to diplomats at the Holy See, he said “the path towards democracy taken in recent years by Myanmar may be resumed through the concrete gesture of the release of the various political leaders imprisoned.”
Watch Sister Ann Roza’s story below:
— Billy Ryan (@billygryan) March 17, 2021
Sister Ann Roza is a voice of the voiceless. May her tribe increase.